Block Printing 101 From the Women Behind One of the Most Covetable Textile Labels on the West Coast

Sisters Lily and Hopie Stockman are in the business of teaching others how to work with their hands. Aside from creating their own eye-catching, geometric printed textiles through their label Block Shop, the Stockmans also host a series of printing workshops at an enviable offsite studio and home in Joshua Tree, California. In a serene, well-appointed setting, visitors come to learn about the art of block printing, a craft that these sisters fell in love with back in 2010 after Lily met a master dyer in Jaipur while she was in art school there studying painting. She worked with the craftsman, Vijendra (Viju) Chhipa, on several pieces she then sent over to her sister who was back home. Hopie was so moved by the paintings that she traveled to meet Viju herself several months later and from there, they formed a textile business that would see all of its materials printed by Viju and his fellow local artisans.

Now the sisters are spreading the art of block printing to others through their workshops (the next one will take place on October 9) and they just recently launched a collection of dhurrie rugs made with hand-dyed cotton and commissioned from weavers outside of Jodhpur. Their work is about design but also about understanding the genesis of each individual design. For the Stockmans, the thoughtful, sustainable, handmade piece in the home is the most important one of all.

In case Joshua Tree or Jaipur is too far of a venture, the sisters share their insight into the process of block printing for anyone in need of stunning prints in their home or for those seeking some grown-up arts and crafts time.

Materials

• Cotton fabric, prewashed to remove starches and impurities• One small container of fabric printing ink, cut 50 percent with water• Printing blocks. You can also carve stamps into halved potatoes or linoleum blocks, or you can buy traditional Indian printing blocks.• One small ink tray (a low, wide Tupperware container will do), lined with one layer of felt, which works like a stamp pad• Pins• A flat surface covered in cardboard or two layers of felt• An iron

Steps

1. Research As you hunt for inspiration, we urge you to put your screen down and look at the world around you; patterns jump out in the most mundane places. Many of our designs are inspired by the architectural motifs we find walking around downtown Los Angeles and Jaipur.

2. SketchStart sketching with a pencil or with watercolors. Sketch your design to scale to make sure it fits inside the dimensions of your piece of fabric.

3. Prepare printing inkPour diluted ink into your tray. The consistency should be roughly one part ink to one part water. The felt printing pad should be wet but not submerged (like an ink pad). Add water as needed.

4. Practice on paperPractice hand-block printing on a piece of paper (see steps 5 and 6), to get the feel of the motion and ink distribution right.

block printingPhoto: Courtesy of Block Shop Textiles

5. Printing directionIf right-handed, print left to right, top to bottom, so you’re not dripping ink onto your design as you go. (Opposite way for left-handed.)

6. Pin your fabricOnce you’re ready to start printing your fabric, pin it onto the cardboard or the felt surface, so that it’s very taut and straight across each edge. Pin the needles on the four corners of the scarf. Angle the needles toward the center of the scarf.

7. Block placementMake sure the block is lined up correctly before making contact with the fabric. Once the block is placed firmly on the fabric, press with force to ensure smooth distribution of ink over fabric. Repeat pattern.

block printingPhoto: Courtesy of Hopie Stockman / @hopiestockman

8. Ink dryingDry from a clothesline until the fabric and ink are completely dry.

9. IroningIron the entire surface of the scarf to set the ink in the fibers for colorfastness.

10. WashingWash in water and dry in the sun.

11. Et voilà!Embrace any imperfections that may have occurred during printing because they’re what makes hand-block printing so special.